jihyo loves her friends. she really does. especially momo, who’s always willing to help a friend out and doesn’t have a single bad bone in her body. her love for her friends is boundless, stretched only in occasions like this moment, between 2nd and 3rd period, with momo shoving a messy pile of papers that look like it lost a fight with an industrial stapler to her face.

“here, read this,” the girl says with a grin on her face, bouncing with excitement. “i took your advice and used the student guide this time. it’s been proofread, don’t worry. i put it through paperrater.com and got an A!”

jihyo leans back in surprise and impulsively grabs the papers blocking her vision. “momo,” she starts, “i really hope this isn’t another — um.” her eyes suddenly register another presence behind the girl. a very familiar presence. “mina, hey. nice to see you here.“

mina gives her one of her shy smiles, tucking her hair behind one ear. “hey jihyo. nice — nice to see you too.” she looks up and meets jihyo’s eyes, and seems to be...blushing?

the moment is broken with momo snapping her fingers in that loud, sharp way only certain people seem to be able to do. “jihyo. jihyo. read my proposal. the team wants permission to use the school’s parking lot as a battleground for a joint dance-off challenge against SM. and you,” she finger-guns, “are the only person between us and our bragging rights.”

“momo i swear. i’ve brought it up to the principal five times. and guess how many times he said no. my influence as the student council president ends the moment i step foot in his office,” jihyo explains. it’s the fifth time since she’s gained said position. she shifts her feet to alleviate the weight of her heavy backpack.

momo pouts. “pretty pleaseee,” she says, stretching the last word for emphasis. “i swear, if he doesn’t approve of this, i won’t bother you again with proposals. we’ll think of something else. right mina?” she nudges the other girl, who breaks into a grin. “just one last time. i promise.”

it’s times like these that jihyo hates her inability to disappoint any of her friends. “fine,” she sighs and shoves momo’s proposal down her bag. “i’ll go now. tell professor park i’ll catch up with the material later, okay?”

momo gives her a bear hug in response, which jihyo pretends to fight off. “go to class before i report you for detention.” it’s an empty threat and they both know it. jihyo’s too nice to give out detentions on mondays, like today.

her friend only grins and gestures for mina to come with her. “come on. i’ll drop you off first.”

jihyo smiles at their retreating figures and heads towards the opposite direction. and thinks about mina. shy, kind mina, who says hi whenever they bump to each other and blushes more than she talks. who dances with the confidence and elegance people don’t expect her to possess. who breathes life into movement, who is the only person momo trusts to choreograph for the team, who —

who is probably straight, if jihyo is to be honest. sure, you shouldn’t assume anyone’s uality, but mina hasn’t given her the slightest indication that she’s into girls. unlike jeongyeon, who used to spout random science facts whenever nayeon was in a twenty meter vicinity. nayeon was just too oblivious to notice jeongyeon’s awkward attempts at flirting.

jihyo’s mind clears when she sees the familiar brown door with a plaque declaring ‘PRINCIPAL’ and suppresses the urge to cringe before knocking; she’s never really felt comfortable with principal hyun-suk, there’s something about his leering gaze that she can’t seem to shake off.

“come in,” she hears him say. she politely enters and puts on a smile, masking her previous introspections, and waits for principal hyun-suk to finish whatever he’s writing. when he looks up, she approaches him and grabs the proposal that was shoved deep in her backpack. a few papers float away and jihyo visibly winces.

principal hyun-suk raises an eyebrow. “the dance team again?” he asks dryly.

“yeah. for what it’s worth, sir, i think this one is much more reasonable than the last proposal she put together. at least they’re shooting for the parking lot, not the roof like last time,” jihyo reasons. she’s always weirdly defensive when it comes to momo and her squad.

he pages through the papers with a disinterested look. the pace was so slow that jihyo absently starts to read the newspaper clippings framed on the wall behind him. “Yang Hyun-Suk Receives ‘Best Upcoming Music Producer 2005’ Award,” one headline displays in big, bold letters. Another one reads, “Seoul University Music Student Releases An Enchanting Online Debut Single.” unexpected past achievements from a public high school principal.

“look,” principal hyun-suk starts. “i still don’t understand why miss hirai is so persistent about doing all these competitions, but i’ll check with the school board. see me again about this tomorrow,” he decides. jihyo sighs in relief. it’s not an outright ‘no’ like the past five times. at least jihyo will have the privilege of bestowing hope to momo.

she stands and prepares to leave. “alright sir, i’ll — “

“no, wait,” he says, raising a hand to stop her. jihyo inwardly groans at the prospect of having to extend her stay. “i have something to discuss with you. it’s about the vandalism case. i understand there was another one last week?”

jihyo affirms with a nod. last thursday, students were greeted with graffiti-sprayed words saying ‘QUEEN BEE JENNIE KIM HOOKS UP W/ LOCAL SOUNDCLOUD RAPPER BOBBY. NEW MUMBLE RAP PREDICTED TO BE RELEASED’ on the back of the gym wall. needless to say, word of it spread quickly throughout the school and earned some laughs.

“are you any closer to figuring out who the vandal is?” principal hyun-suk said, serious expression on his face. “it’s already been six months, and we still don’t have a clue on who it is. i’m starting to think that the student council isn’t taking this case seriously.”

jihyo laughs nervously and shifts in her seat. “sir, with all due respect….right now we’re focusing on helping the soccer team organize the championship match with SM. it’s a week away, and i just thought that since the vandalism case isn’t real